The present invention relates to an inline skating sports floor which is especially adapted for use when playing inline roller hockey, but is also suitable for use as a general purpose sports surface with most indoor and outdoor ball sports and gymnastics.
Inline roller hockey is becoming a very popular sport around the world. In 1997, it was the fastest growing sport in the USA. Inline hockey is derived from ice hockey and is played where ice is not available. Inline roller skates are used when playing inline hockey, and the rules of the game are similar to those used in ice hockey. The big difference is that ice hockey is played on ice, while inline hockey is played on a hard dry surface.
Roller hockey players must be able to obtain a good grip between the rollers of their roller skates and the support surface of the floor on which they are playing in order to accelerate, turn while in extreme sideways leaning positions and maneuver during high speed skating. They must also be able to stop which requires a controlled side slip of the roller skates on the support surface. The balance between suitable grip and slip of the inline roller skates relative to the support surface is difficult to obtain. It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a floor which provides the desired characteristics of grip and slip of inline roller skates relative to the support surface.
The puck used in roller hockey is traditionally a plastic disk with protruding nylon studs on opposite sides thereof. This type of puck does not glide very well on prior art floors, and as a result, the game is slow, and passes of the puck from one player to another are short as compared to those made in ice hockey.
In order to provide a satisfactory floor, it is necessary to take into consideration the requirement for a variably controllable grip during cornering, acceleration and stopping as well good traction control of the skates at high speeds, while providing improved glide of the puck along the support surface of the floor.